5-star CB D.J. Pickett has Miami football top 3 and talks NIL

The Miami football team was named with LSU and Oregon in the top three for five-star cornerback D.J. Pickett. Pickett is the sixth-ranked prospect, second CB and top player in Florida in the 2025 On3 Industry Ranking. Over the next four weekends, Pickett has official visits with LSU, Georgia, Miami and Oregon.

Pickett has taken four unofficial visits to Miami since 2021 per his On3 profile. LSU has already had four previous unofficial visits from Pickett with Georgia and Oregon each hosting him unofficially three times. LSU is hosting Pickett the weekend of May 31, Georgia June 7, Miami June 14 and Oregon June 21.

Pickett will be the only CB and one of two five-star prospects visiting Miami the weekend of June 14. Five-star linebacker Zayden Walker is taking his official visit on the same weekend as Pickett. Safeties Sael Reyes and Amari Wallace will also be in Coral Gables with Pickett as Miami seeks to build their secondary.

Rivals also weighed on Pickett's recruitment. Adam Gorney of Rivals projects Miami as the favorite to earn a commitment from Pickett. Gorney's colleague John Garcia stated LSU as the program best positioned for a Pickett commitment. Miami signed Pickett's cousin, edge rusher Booker Pickett Jr. in the 2024 class.

"“I mean, the process – I like money...Who doesn’t want to talk about it? But it’s…a little complicated. But I’m still learning things right now. That’s where I’m at, just getting educated on things...It’s – I don’t want to say a big role. But it’s something that I would want to talk about [to understand]. But at the same time, that will not be the deciding thing.”"

- 5-star CB D.J. Pickett as told to On3

Gorney stated that Miami is definitely the program to beat for a Pickett commitment. Garcia said, "The local buzz has not been as pro-Hurricanes ahead of official visit season. Instead, many around the five-star continue to cite LSU as the program most likely to win out for the secondary recruit at this time."

Garcia also stated "I see the Tigers adding to their lead with the first official visit to their name this weekend." It has often been debated if the first or last official visit weekend puts a program in the best position to receive a commitment. Miami has the third visit from Pickett this summer.

Pickett would be a foundational player for Miami in the 2025 class. The Hurricanes do not currently have a commitment from a five-star prospect. Four-star linebacker Elijah Melendez who is 111th in the On3 Industry Rankings is the highest-rated 2025 Miami commit by their measure.